Shoe drying apparatus



June 1966 J. M. M GOLDRICK SHOE DRYING APPARATUS 2 sheets-ggeet 1 g/eaoi'in ATTORNEYS INVENTOR. JOSEPH M. M GOLDRICK Filed Sept. 19, 1962 w: m on June 21, 1966 'J MGGOLDRICK 3,256,616

SHOE DRYING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 19, 1962 2 SheetsSheet 2 INVENTOR JOSEPH M. MEGOLDRICK United States Patent 3,256,616 SHOE DRYING APPARATUS Joseph M. McGoldi-ick, 509 Platt St., Toledo, Ohio Filed Sept. 19, 1962, Ser. No. 224,654 3 Claims. (Cl. 34104) This invention relates to apparatus that may be used for drying shoes which have become wet while'being worn.

When a shoe has become wet it must be dried with great care. A wet shoe can be dried by simply exposing it to the atmosphere, but such drying takes at least 24 hours even under relatively favorable weather conditions of 60 percent relative humidity and 80 F. temperature. If a wet shoe is placed in an oven in order to accelerate the drying, the shoe is liable to be damaged. For example, a wet leather shoe placed in an oven at a relatively low oven temperature of 250 P. will shrink and warp severely.

The principal object of the invention is to provide apparatus for drying shoes rapidly and economically without harming the shoes.

More specific objects and advantages are apparent from the description, in which reference is had to the accompanying drawings illustrating preferred embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 1 of the' drawings is an elevation of a shoe dryer embodying the invention which is associated with a domestic laundry dryer.

FIG. 2 is a vertical section of the shoe dryer taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary horizontal section taken on the line 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a front elevation of a unitary apparatus designed to dry four pairs of shoes simultaneously.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of the same apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a wiring diagram of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

These specific figures and the specific description that follows merely illustrate .and disclose and are not intended to limit the invention.

In the development of the present invention it has been discovered that a wet shoe can be dried rapidly without harming the shoe by injecting a stream of warm air into the toe of the shoe and at the same time conducting a fiow of warm air over substantially the entire outer surface of the shoe. It has been found that a shoe is not dried satisfactorily when warm air is merely injected into the toe of the shoe or is merely brought into contact with the exterior of the shoe. Both the interior surfaces and the exterior surfaces must be exposed simultaneously to a flow of warm air. If only the interiorsurfaces of the shoe are exposed to the warm air flow, condensation of moisture occurs in the relatively cool outer portions of the shoe and those portions remain wet.

It has been discovered that the warm air supplied by an ordinary domestic laundry drier is of the proper temperature and relative humidity for use in a shoe drying apparatus embodying the invention. In the apparatus of FIG. 1, a shoe drier 10 is mounted ona domestic laundry drier 11. For the sake of simplicity, the shoe drier is shown mounted on top of the laundry drier, but the shoe drier may be built as part of the laundry drier and may occupy any available space in the casing of the laundry drier.

As shown in FIG. 2, the shoe drier is designed to hold two pairs of shoes, each shoe being located within a separate chamber. Each such chamber has a flat bottom 12 and has a rear wall having a vertical lower portion 13 and an upper portion 14 that is contoured to conform to the instep of the shoe. Each chamber is also bounded at the sides by a vertical wall which consists of one of the vertical partitions 15 or consists of one of the vertical side walls of the shoe drier 16. The front of each chamber is closed by a door 16 which is mounted on four hinges l7 and which extends the full width of all four chambers and surrounds the toes and soles of the shoes in the chambers.

The shoe drier 10 is supplied with warm air from the exhaust duct 18 of the laundry drier 11. A damper 19 in the exhaust duct 18 can be moved by means of a pivoted handle 20 to the position shown in FIG. 1 so as to divert air from the exhaust duct into the open end of an intake manifold 21. The intake manifold extends 'the entire widthof the shoe drier and is closed at its opposite end by the side wall of the shoe drier.

Warm air entering the intake manifold 21 leaves the intake manifold through four openings 22 located in the lower part of the manifold. Each of'these four openings leads to a curved nozzle 23 which injects the warm air into the toe of a shoe.

The preferred means for supporting each shoe is a spacer extending upward from each nozzle which supports the shoe inside the toe and is adjustable to determine the height at which .the shoe is supported. In the apparatus shown in the drawings, such a spacer is provided by means of two sockets 24 located on the flattened front side of each nozzle 23, for receiving a pin 25. One of these sockets is deeper than the other so that the pin 25 extends to a lesser height when located in the deeper socket. The shoes can be mounted in position for drying by opening the door 16 and dropping each shoe in position so that the pin 25 supports the shoe inside the toe. A cup 26 is rernovably located in the bottom of each of the chambers and is adapted to catch drippings from the shoe.

The warm air injected through each of the nozzles 23 flows into the toe of the shoe and then fiows back past the nozzle into the heel. Some of the air emerging from the heel flows downward and forward and is guided by the cup 26 and by the side walls of the chamber, and some of the air flows upward along the instep. All of the air entering each nozzle 23 leaves the chamber through an outlet 27 which is located at the top of the chamber and which leads to an exhaust manifold 28. The exhaust manifold is of generally the same structure as the intake manifold and is open'at one end to permit the air to discharge into the upper portion of the exhaust duct 18 which vents the air outside of the building in accordance with the usual practice.

The shape and dimensions of each chamber of the shoe drier are such that the air emerging from the heel of the shoe is caused to flow not only along the instep and sole but also along both sides of the shoe. Each of the pins 25 holds the shoe in a substantially central position in the chamber.

The vertical partitions 15 may be omitted without substantially impairing the air circulation in the chambers, particularly when it is expected that all of the chambers will be occupied by shoes during operation of the device.

In a test ofan apparatus constructed substantially as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, four shoes of different sizes and types were immersed in cold water for five minutes and then allowed to drain for five minutes. The four shoes were then placed in the apparatus, and air was supplied from the laundry drier at a velocity of 1200 feet per minute and a temperature of 125 F., measured at the discharge ends of the nozzles. At the end of minutes the four shoes were removed and were found to be completely dry.

In a comparative test, one of the shoes used in the previous test, after being immersed in cold water for five minutes and allowed to drain for five minutes, was

suspended upon a nozzle and pin similar to that shown in FIG. 2, but no casing was provided around the shoe and the air from the nozzle was allowed to escape from the shoe into the open atmosphere. Under these conditions, with air flowing from the nozzle at a velocity of 1200 feet per minute and at a temperature of 125 F., the shoe was still wet after 210 minutes.

In another comparative test, one of the same shoes was immersed in cold water for five minutes, was allowed to drain for five minutes and then was placed in a horizontal position inside the laundry drier itself. The hot air supply of the laundry drier was then operated to supply air to the interior of the drier at 130 F. while the shoe remained stationary. Under these conditions the shoe was not dry until the expiration of 360 minutes.

The remaining figures of the drawings show a shoe drier of a capacity for drying four pairs of shoes simul- .taneously, which is designed to provide its own supply of warm air. The upper portion of this shoe drier consists essentially of two units similar to that shown in FIG. 2, which are positioned back to back. Each of the shoes in the drier of FIGS. 4 and 5 is positioned in a chamber which is substantially like each of the chambers in the device of FIG. 2.

As shown in FIG. 5, warm air is supplied to each of the chambers through an intake manifold 29 having a cross section that is double the cross section of the intake manifold 21 of FIG. 2. 'The intake manifold 29 at its midpoint opens from a central supply duct 30, as shown in FIG. 4. (For the sake of clarity, the drier is shown in FIG. 4 with the front cover and hinges removed.)

The supply duct 30 consists of the space between the two adjacent vertical partitions which form the inner side walls of the four innermost chambers. It is supplied with air by means of a blower 31 driven by an electric motor 32.

The air exhausted from the chambers shown in FIG. 5 flows into an exhaust manifold 33 which has a cross section that is double the cross section of the exhaust manifold 28 of FIG. 2. The exhaust manifold 33 leads the air through a vertical return duct 34 to the inlet 35 of the blower. Resistance wire elements 36 for'heating the air are provided in the inlet 35.

The lower portion of this device consists of a skirt 37 which is mounted on four feet 38 and is open at the bottom. Fresh air is admitted to the inlet 35 through apertures 39, and a corresponding amount of air is vented from the exhaust manifold 33 through an outlet 40. The apertures 39 are sized so as to admit suificient fresh air to produce efiicient drying. For example, the amount of air entering the apertures 39 may be approximately onehalf the amount of air flowing through the return duct 34. The introduction of an excessive flow of fresh air through the apertures 39 would be wasteful of the heat generated by the resistance wire elements 36.

As indicated by the wiring diagram of FIG. 6, current from one side of a power supply line 41 is supplied to the clock timer 42 which may be set to maintain the circuit closed for any desired drying interval. Under control of the clock timer 42, power is supplied to the electric motor 32 and the resistance wire elements 36. A thermostatic switch 43 in series with the resistance wire elements 36 is located in the duct 30, and is set to open above a suitable maximum temperature, such as F., and to close below such temperature. In the operation of this system, the clock timer 42 is set to supply power for the desired drying interval. The blower 31 runs during this interval, and the thermostatic switch 43 turns the resistance wire elements 36 on and off as required to maintain the air entering the duct 30 at a temperature of about 150 F.

The two right-hand pins 25 in FIG. 4 are positioned in the deeper sockets to accommodate a pair of infant's shoes which are indicated in outline in this figure.

It will be understood that the devices shown in the drawings may be made longer so as to increase the number of pairs of shoes which can be dried simultaneously.

Various other embodiments of the invention may be devised to meet various requirements.

Having described the invention, I claim:

1. A drier comprising, in combination, a housing having an intake manifold, means for conducting air into the intake manifold, a nozzle in the housing connected to discharge air from the intake manifold, means for supporting a shoe in position for drying in the housing, the nozzle being so directed as to inject the air into the toe of a shoe supportedin such position, and the housing including elements which are adapted to closely surround a shoe supported therein, to cause the air emerging from the heel of such a shoe to flow over the outer surface of such a shoe in a closely confined space, and an outlet for exhausting air from such space at a point adjacent to the toe of a shoe supported in the housing.

2. A drier according to claim 1 wherein the nozzle is directed upward, and the means for supporting a shoe comprises a spacer extending upward from the nozzle.

3. A drier according to claim 2, wherein a removable cup is provided to catch drippings from a shoe supported in the housing and to guide the air flow.

References Cited by the Examiner FOREIGN PATENTS 10/1919 Great Britain.

WILLIAM F. ODEA, Primary Examiner. NORMAN YUDKOFF, Examiner.

W. C. EVERETT, A. D. HERRMANN,

Assistant Examiners. 

1. A DRIER COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A HOUSING HAVING AN INTAKE MANIFOLD, MEANS FOR CONDUCTING AIR INTO THE INTAKE MANIFOLD, A NOZZLE IN THE HOUSING CONNECTED TO DISCHARGE AIR FROM INTAKE MANIFOLD, MEANS FOR SUPPORTING A SHOE IN POSITION FOR DRYING IN THE HOUSING, THE NOZZLE BEING SO DIRECTED AS TO INJECT THE AIR INTO THE TOE OF A SHOE SUPPORTED IN SUCH POSITION, AND THE HOUSING INCLUDING ELEMENTS WHICH ARE ADAPTED TO CLOSELY SURROUND A SHOE SUPPORTED THEREIN, TO CAUSE THE AIR EMERGING FROM THE HEEL OF SUCH A SHOE FLOW OVER THE OUTER SURFACE OF SUCH A SHOE IN A CLOSELY CONFINED SPACE, AND AN 